The Hunter Elijah
by Jonathan Bray
Summary: The life of a conflicted Hunter. Elijah is a loner, and has a general disliking for most of humanity, yet he takes on the plagues of mankind nightly. One night he has a vision. As hard as he tries to ignore it, he can't help but play into its prophecy.
1. Chapter 1

The sidewalk was cold, and lifeless. The occasional street light looked scared in the darkness around it. This was a bad city to be trapped in the dark. Eli knew that first hand. He had taken on more then his fair share of night stalkers, demons, ghosts, ghouls, vampires and everything else lurking in the twilight of humanity. Tonight would be no different. He made his way down the street with his shoulders squared, and a don't fuck with me stride. He wasn't in a bad mood at all, he was anxious.

The crisp night and moonless sky told him a fight was coming. More sucker heads for him to pop off. He loved it, he could hear "Cold As Ice" playing in his head. Eli loved listening to Gangsta' Rap before a fight, it made him ready, no more then ready. The flat out egotistical nature of the music, mixed with the glorified violence made him feel invincible. He never thought how it was only a feeling. He just heard the words over and over again in his head.

"Stop him if you could you're as cold as ice

And you'll be, stiff as a log in a suit lookin nice

Youse a sinner nigga you're as cold as ice

But you ain't cold enough to freeze hot slugs when they run up in ya

You ain't in my class nigga, I'm the last nigga

You gon' fuck around and get blast, sucka ass nigga

The soul survivor, survivor sole

Nigga you roll, and I roll, let's stroll

I told you that I'm cold!"

These bitches, he thought, I'm gonna make 'em hurt tonight. Every night he went out excited dusk couldn't come fast enough for him. He hunted the streets looking for them, as soon as he saw one it would be on. No warning no bull shit campy dialog, just good old fashioned ass beatings. The only talking he did was to antagonize them into throwing a punch or following him to a more deserted location. He could see all the evil, but others couldn't even when it was in front of them, killing them. Some how people rationalized it, altered the facts of what they saw into something a little more believable.

Eli wore a puffy gray jacket that concealed the body armor he had on his chest. Black heavy jeans, and a pair of all black Iverson shoes finished off his urban guerrilla outfit. Eli respected Iverson, he was a warrior fighting with everything he had until the end. He packed a sawed off shotgun, two Dessert eagles, a machete, and a set of custom wide brass knuckles. He shaved the tips to tear flesh. The brass knuckles he called Johnson, and Dempsey. Being a skilled pugilist they were his favorite weapons. This skill he learned more out of survival in his youth then a leisure activity.

The enemy he sought to night was aristocratic, high society nose in the air, sharp dressed scum. They hung out at nice clubs with dress codes that require ties, and skilled cooks who could make the most ludicrous part of an animal , allegedly, enjoyable. Try the cooked chicken anus in the honey mango sauce its delicious. This took him to the pretty down town that they show on TV, and billboards encouraging you to move into the safe fun active community. Never mind the disappearances, strange sounds, and high mortality rate, cause it won't happen to you, just move in so you can have a cool address.

Eli didn't know who he felt more sorry for the one's living in the high-rises, or the ones in the gutter. The evil fed off the souls of both, only the game of consumption separated the two. He only knew how angry the realization made him. Every time he watched the news he could see the douche bags pulling the strings behind the camera, leading good people into a slaughterhouse of depression. Kept at a slow steep by the commercialized need to consume and the idea that you are not complete if you don't buy. That's how they worked their game. A slow depression on the soul, keep people so busy with the grind stone they can't see the pool of blood raising around them, they die with out ever knowing why.

He thought of his mother, the grindstone she worked all her life the things it never provided. All the looks the pretty people who had everything would give him. The disdain on the face of the grocer when she would use the Food Stamps to buy an ice cream for him. He wanted to choke that cashier. What the fuck he thought look at the little kid, his clothes are dirty, tattered, and you don't think his mother should use a food stamp to buy him a small treat? Give him one little taste of something good and sweet, no I guess the world should just keep shitting in his mouth. Fuck them, fuck them all. His hands curled into a tight fist from the anger of the old memory that remained as vivid as the day it happened.

All the anger kept him hard and driven. He tried to stay balanced in it, but half the time he hated both worlds, and wanted to see them burn. Suck heads are burning tonight, he thought. As if by his request he bumped into one of the socialites of the evening. He growled at Eli, and Eli saw his true face the others couldn't see. He saw them for the demons they were.

"Fuck you suck'a watch where your pasty ass is walking." Eli threw up his arms to say see about me. The man in the designer suit, and no tie, all fashion, and lights, looking like a man to emulate by the masses looked down on him and said,

"You sir are rude beyond all belief. If I wasn't in a hurry I would teach you some manners." He dusted a thin layer of invisible dirt from his jacket as he spoke.

"Teach me some manners, who the fuck do you think you are? Whatever asshole of a cunt shat you out, and put your fake ass on a silver platter should have told you to keep your fucking mouth shut when you're outside your safe little condo. You're in my world now, and it's filled with pain I'm dying to share."

The socialite grunted amused by the audacity of this, based on the evidence of sight, petty thug. A small crowd of people had gathered around the two, or one man. Eli knew he had to make the yuppie sucker chase him away from the crowd, and he was pretty sure the suck head would like it that way. With out making it obvious he circled around so his back was to the alley.

"What the fuck does a big shot like you have to be running around for anyway, aren't you mister somebody, doesn't this whole fuckin' world stop, and go for you? No wait I know you're just another poser. Found some tacky clothes at a second hand shop, and said I'll run around town like I'm one of the in crowd."

The bastards always took offense to their wardrobe being called into question, vanity is a sin and it runs deep with their kind. So is wrath, and it runs deep with Eli. The pale man just stood their, a rage filled his eyes with a look like he just wanted to reach out and rip Eli's head from his body. Eli was sure he could too.

"Man fuck your punk ass." Eli spat on his pants as he turned and walked into the alley. He could feel the mans eyes searing through his flesh and feasting on his heart.

"You pay all this money and you still have to put up with these people, but I won't let him ruin my sunshine."

The pale man said with a sick smile, and walked off. At least that's what the crowd thought, had they been able to see they might have noticed his body went one way but his shadow went down the alley.

Eli didn't have to see it to know, the shadows became to many, and pitch black until the entire alley was a void of light. Fucking shadow crafters Eli thought, I can play your hide and seek game too. He inhaled deeply pulling his closed hand to his lips and exhaled through his hand throwing his breath with his fingers. An old man had taught him the trick, and it had saved Eli's life many times, to bad it didn't save his. His image disappeared from the sight of the pale man cloaked in shadows.

The pale man moved all around the shadows frantically trying to understand what happened. He thrashed and clawed at every form he could see, nothing. He stopped and tried to listen for the sound of his beating heart to rip out. A sound he couldn't hear over the tapping of a metal object. He leaped over to where the sound came from and reached out for it. His arms pulled back frustration, and some air. He heard it again this time from the other end of the alley. Again he flew into the air and grabbed for the sound, he pulled back a filed trash bin and threw it across the alley. After a loud crash there was silence. He waited just let him hear the bastard one more time, and he would rip the flesh from his body and leave him pin stripped in flesh and blood. The buzzing silence of nothing came.

He turned and began to head out the alley, _ting ting_. He spun around sure he had heard the sound. He waited, more frustration.

"I'm going to gut you like the lowly animal you are, before you ever leave this alley." The pale man said to Eli. He had only half turned when he heard the faint sound again. His eyes focused on the sound as it became louder, a strange orange shape was the source. Then he saw it the brass knuckles set a glow from the cleave of Eli.

"Hunter?" The thing said with a mocking tone. Eli moved out from his shadow. "Fashion Police." The creature let out a growl of rage.

Eli smiled and opened his stance with his brass knuckles burning, the fire didn't hurt him, it never hurt the righteous. The thing moved fast into Eli, but he had already planned out the fight he saw it in his head as he always did. Before the thing could pull of it's killing blow Eli threw up his hand in defense. From his arm a blue light sprayed out in a circle. The evil lurched back in pain, Eli's will was strong, the stronger it was the more painful it was for the evil to be in his barrier.

With a cross hook he smashed the evil's face as it reeled back. The spikes of the burning brass knuckles ripping flesh from bone. He laid a hard right on the beast followed up with a left jab to the ribs and then a solid upper cut that tore half his chin off and sent him crashing to the ground screaming in pain, and face on fire. The evil squealed on the ground thrashing wildly and clutching what was left of it's jaw. Eli stood over the creature pulled out his machete and brought it down through the wrist and neck of the evil. The body burst into a fine dust leaving the clothes sunken and laid out on the ground. He looked down at the hollow clothes, "You didn't suffer enough."

Eli sheathed his machete, and knuckles. He pulled a small gym pack from his back and began looking through the clothes for jewelry, and anything else he might be able to pawn, or sale. As he went through the clothes he found a ring with a glyph that marked the wearer as somebody in the vampire hierarchy.

"I always thought you had to be pretty powerful to wear one of these. Guess they hand them out to any bitch these days."

In the back of his mind he knew some powerful creatures would try to find him. Let them come, he thought, one at a time or in groups, I'll kill them all, every last one of them. His hand tightened, around the ring as he clenched his jaw. He packed in the clothes and other jewelry but left the ring on the ground. He looked through the trash until he found a decent piece of paper, and removed a pencil from his inner jacket pocket. On the paper he wrote, _I killed your friend and I'm going to kill you._ He rolled up the paper, slid it through the ring, and tossed it in the corner of the alley. On his way out from the alley he stopped. He turned around and walked back over to the ring, unzipped his pants and pissed on it.

The walk from the alley to the bus stop that would take him home was uneventful. On a normal night Eli would have eradicated a couple more sucker heads, but tonight was special. He knew the trouble he was bringing down on himself would give him more vampires then he could handle. But fuck it, he thought, the more the bloodier. He had only been at the bus stop a couple of minutes when it arrived. The bus was empty except for one passenger and the driver. Eli took a seat in the back so he could see who got on and so no one could sit behind him.

As he looked down the aisle of the bus he saw himself fighting the shadows, battling to save his life and those around him as the people looked on confused, and annoyed at him. He closed his eyes, tried to focus his mind on the goal, eliminating the sickness of humanity, the cancerous tissue that was destroying our society. Shining the truth on evils ideal of working your whole life and consuming as much as possible before you die. The more you consume the happier you are, the better you are then he who has less, and there's a big bonus prize for those who screw over their brother to obtain the things they desire. He hated the greed he saw in people, it cast the reflection of his greed for liquor. Stop, he thought, I just want peace in mind. Really he just wanted a few stiff drinks.

The bus slowed to a stop and the door opened. Before he saw them he felt them. Like the dirty bottom of a glass you had drunken from they put a sick feeling in your stomach. Every time they came around it was like the whole world didn't fit right everything was at an angle. Two young attractive, to those who couldn't see, women boarded the bus. The other young man perked up at their arrival. The two took notice and sat at the seat in front of him. They began to talk about what they would do tonight and the mans posture lifted up even more. He began to speak with them and they answered back with great interest. Eli thought of just walking up to them casually pulling out his machete and chopping off their fucking heads. He smiled at his idea, but knew it wouldn't work, but he gave high points for shock value.

He hadn't seen things like the two girls before. They had what looked like the red fungus that grows in showers that haven't been cleaned all over there face. Their eyes were empty sockets and their teeth were rotten beyond British lore. Eli must have been tired because he had an absolute look of disgust on his face that said I see you for what you are, and one of the women took notice of it. Forgot the first rule of the game, act like you don't see them he thought. As she stood up and began to walk towards the back Eli pulled his Dessert Eagle from the holster, but kept it in his jacket pointing up, and straight ahead. I'll blow this bitch's head clear off if she just gives me the chance.

"What the hell do you think you're looking at?"

She said in a demanding and superior tone. In a faked drunken slur and with his head half cocked Eli replied,

"Just two of the ugliest women I've ever seen. Some one call the cops this woman's lips been stolen, naw call the zoo tell 'em to ugly beast have escaped and need to be put back in their cages."

He let out a drunken laugh, and fell back into his seat mumbling. The women smirked,

"I remember a time when they kept your kind in cages. Those were better days for your people."

She smiled and turned to walk off. Well fuck her Eli thought. He stood up as she walked back to her friend who was again engaged with her meal for the evening. Eli pulled the Dessert eagle from his jacket and pointed it right at the back of her head. He looked through the gun and focused on the bullet in the chamber. How odd this must look to the passer by he thought as he pulled the trigger.

The windows of the bus shattered not from the gun going off but from the scream of the other creature who turned to see her friends head turn into a smoking hole. The scream made Eli reel back and the bus driver slammed on the breaks throwing Eli forward and his gun out of his hand. He caught himself on one of the handrails only to be knocked back by a lunging punch that dislocated his jaw. He crashed to the floor, and felt his pain so he wouldn't pass out.

The woman jumped on his back landing her knees deep into his flesh. To much pain he couldn't concentrate on getting a barrier up. She grabbed the back of his head and began smashing it into the floor.

"She was my sister, and you fucking killed her!"

She yelled as she crushed his head into the floor one last time. Blood was running from Eli's face, and he was in danger of drowning in it. She flipped him over like a toy doll, and squeezed on his hanging jaw.

"I'm going to make you hurt for a long time."

She took her other hand and squeezed Eli's balls. A gurgled urgh could be heard.

"That's enough."

Some one yelled from behind her. Two arms reached over her to pull her off him. The arms and body they belonged to were sent flying by an effortless motion from her arm. It had still given Eli enough time to get his hand on his other Dessert Eagle. The pain seared in his head, and he couldn't picture the bullet. Which meant he couldn't make it a glowing one like he had used to kill her sister. He pulled the trigger and fired one shot that ripped through her shoulder and twirled her off his body. He raised his arm and kept firing into her body. She fell down to the ground and her head hit the back of a seat.

Eli stood as fast as his pounding head would allow. He dropped the emptied Dessert Eagle, pulled his machete from the case on his back, and stepped toward the woman, to slow. They don't stay down long. She leaped up and kicked at Eli he barely dodged the kick and drove the machete into the side of the woman. She screamed and in two motions broke the handle off, and forward punched Eli dead center in his chest. The blow sent him flying into the back seat. His back smashed into the headrest, and he fell in to a slumped seated position. If it wasn't for the body armor he was sure his sternum would have shattered. Through the blood pooled around his eyes he could see the bus driver and the young man looking on in astonishment. Thanks for the assist, he thought, as he reached into his pocket and slid his hand into the brass knuckles.

The knuckles he could feel. That made them real to him easy to concentrate on easy to ignite. The familiar warmth from the cleaved weapons filled his hand and gave him a second wind. The woman pounced on Eli so fast that it was like she hadn't moved but just appeared over him. She clutched Eli's throat and opened her mouth to say something, when Eli hit her with a flaming right hand. Little pockets of flesh ripped and seared on her face. He punched her again and she fell to the ground. He fell on top of her and just punched and punched until her head was a burning stain on the floor.

The bus driver, and young man looked on in horror. Eli had really scared them his loaded gun was a foot from them and they didn't even try to pick it up. He grabbed the guns and painfully walked past the two men, who winced as he passed. As he stepped off the bus he caught a glimpse of him self in the side mirror. What a mess, he thought, what an understatement. Now he really wanted a drink, or drinks. Sirens sounded in the background and Eli to kept to the shadows as he made his way back to the slum he called home.

The blood on his face crusted over and one eye had swollen shut by the time he got back home. His forehead was swollen with a huge gash, so was his lip and jaw, which hung unnaturally low, at least they wouldn't be able to identify me. The pain in his head was to much. Before he cleaned the blood off in his bathroom he grabbed four vicadin, and a half-empty bottle of Jack. He downed both quickly. Then he proceeded to wash the blood off his face, and pop his jaw back into place. The pain was so great he almost ripped the door of it's hinges.

He drew a bath of hot water and removed his clothes admiring the bruises on his chest from where the girl had struck him. That's some little bitch, he thought, she must work out. He sunk into the bathtub with a bottle of cheap liquor in hand. He drank half the bottle and let it slip to the floor. He sunk lower and lower into the water until his lips were just about to go under. He could feel a blackout coming on, maybe I'll drown, we're all drowning in something. How did I ever find a bathtub big enough for me he thought.

He closed his eyes and felt the water wash over his lips, he asked him to make him a stronger person. Take his fears from him and show him the true path of righteousness. Let me be your weapon, let me be your hand, make my actions holy for the greater good even if they damn me for my eternity. He broke off from his thought as jaded feelings crept in. His eyes opened under water. The water began to glimmer with a white glow. Why do I seek your help, your forgiveness? You are nothing, to scared to save your sheep you leave them for the wolf. You left her for the wolves. I will burn their world down, and then destroy your kingdom for taking her. For allowing the agenda of twisted men to drive your house.

Eli opened his mouth to cry out but just sucked in a mouth full of water that filled his lungs. His turned white and his moth gaped open as he sank to the dirty plastered bottom of the tub. At the bottom of the tub under the glimmering water his eyes slowly closed. He felt peace only briefly until the pain of lungs void of air filled his chest and his body flew out of the tub. Eli threw himself to the bathroom floor coughing up the water that had made it into his lungs. "There will be no salvation. No salvation…" He kept repeating on the cold, wet bathroom floor. His words grew softer and softer as the darkness consumed him.


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning he woke to a splitting headache, and much too early. Lately his dreams had been making him lose sleep. The visions that came once every other month since he had been imbued were now coming almost nightly. The visions had also become more vivid, and gruesome.

Last night he saw a flood of vampires come for him in the dark night sky, and he saw himself knock them from the sky like fallen angels. The other vision he tried to forget about like all his visions. Eli would ignore them, even when he would see the same person in life as in his dream he would just walk on by. It was the idea of his destiny being planned out that he hated. Also he thought the visions were a great way to bait him. For the past 10 years he had managed to stay alive where so many others died, and most he watched die as they foolishly followed their visions. Eli had heard that some who forsake the visions lose the ability to receive them, not with his luck. So Eli ignored the child he saw last night being torn a part by the beasts in the shadows.

The more important thing to worry about was dealing with the effects of heavy drinking, and painkillers taken on an empty stomach. When was the last time I ate? He stood from the bathroom and stared into the mirror turning his head from side to side. The wounds from the previous nights fight had all but healed. He had a black eye where it had been swollen shut, and a tender red mark on his forehead. The bruise on his chest was completely gone. A little dip always soothes the body, and a couple of these helps with a hangover. Eli opened the bottle of pills and downed a few. Then made his way to the kitchen, with out food the pills would tear his stomach apart.

He stepped over the trash that piled up in his home, and put on a pair of shorts that had been laying on the floor. "First thing to do start a pot of coffee." He said as he tossed out the coffee from yesterday, and filled the pot with water. When he finished with the coffee he opened his refrigerator briefly then closed it as he thought there's no food in here. He grabbed a box of cereal from the cupboard and began to eat it by the handful. What he really craved was some eggs, hash browns, and pancakes. He promised himself he would get some after selling the clothes, and jewelry he took from the dead vamp.

Suddenly he wondered what he had done with the bag of clothes. Try as he might after the bus was a bit of a blank spot in his memory. He hoped that he hadn't destroyed them in a drunken tirade as he searched through the pile of blood soaked clothes he wore the night before. "Jackpot." He said as he lifted the coat and found the gym bag underneath.

He drank his coffee and planned his day. The second hand store was getting suspicious of where Eli was getting the clothes he sold. So he made it a point to try and dress a little more on the level. Which meant a clean looking sweater that left no place to conceal a gun. It's amazing the difference in how people treat you when you're dressed well, even though it doesn't make you a better person. One of these days I'm going to take advantage of these dumb fucks that think clothes make the man. He never would though, but he believed they deserved it.

When he finished his second cup of coffee he put on the nicer clothes he had, grabbed the bag of goods, and headed into town to sell, buy, and be a good little consumer. The sun was out and the day looked lovely, it even made him feel happy, slightly. As much as Eli saw the beauty in sunshine he couldn't help but see the ugliness of our world. The light brought all the vile to the foreground of his vision. It was like staring at a beautiful painting with a finely crafted wooden frame that had flakes of gold glistening in the light, and scenery so vivid it was like the artists brush had been dipped in the hue of sunset, and brightened with hope. Then some one had taken a rotting, festering, green shit crawling with maggots and set it ever so carefully in the middle of the painting. Look to the positive he told himself as he tried to shake his depressive, and sickening thoughts. Focus on the good, everything has value and meaning.

Glints of hope danced in the sunlight as he rode by on the bus and thought this could be a nice place, if we just get rid of the evil. He saw his vision in the face of a group of smiling children, innocence he thought, all bright eyed and filled with hope as they were let into a candy store by a chubby faced man with a smile that was more like the death of a smile. As the chubby man turned around to follow the children in Eli saw his back side it was like a giant slug covered in oil with egg shaped balls covered in sludge pulsing out. Then he realized they weren't balls they were the heads of children. Their eyes opened and their mouths cried out. Eli pulled the bell to stop, but he knew the next one was two blocks down.

"Let me off the bus now!" He yelled as he rushed to the exit door. The bus driver looked up before he could speak Eli yelled again,

"Let me off this fucking bus!"

The driver braked and the doors opened Eli jumped off the bus and ran for the candy store. He felt the brass knuckles in his pockets just to be sure, and told him self this had nothing to do with his vision, the building and time was all wrong.

As he came up to the Candy Store doors he noticed a slime trail on the ground, and the lights inside were turned off. He pushed on the door and found them locked. He ran through a number of options in his head before deciding that there was no time for subtlety. He smashed out the glass window of the door and stepped inside. The inside was bigger then the building looked from the outside. He didn't like that, it meant the thing was manipulating the environment, and that was very bad news.

Walking to the back of the store the far walls shifted and six doors appeared where there had been only two. The thing knows I'm here, Eli thought. Looking down at the ground the slime trail was to easy to follow, thanks slimy he smirked as he followed the path. Opening the door that had slime leading to it. When he crossed the threshold the room spun, the center of gravity flipped and he went falling towards the ceiling. He caught himself and avoided any real damage. He stayed low to the ceiling and then stood up once he felt a little more balance. Gravity reverted and he went crashing back to the floor. He looked up and again there were six doors to choose. Again he followed the trail. This time before he opened the door he breathed in deeply pulling his hand to his mouth he exhaled and passed his breath with his fingers. The thing no longer could sense Eli, and believed he had just run off frightened by it's ability to manipulate the building. Best luck I ever had was saving the life of a Gypsy, he thought.

The doors disappeared, as did the wall in front of him. He was now standing in a large open room with concrete flooring, and thick support beams standing two by two running the floors length. At the end of the room he could see the man/slug thing facing one of the scared little children. The Manslugs chest opened from his stomach to the center of his chest and it's ribs looked like they were razor sharp teeth. A black tongue slithered over the child and Eli broke into a dash. His brass knuckles burning he went for a running haymaker that would have ended the fight, however the slime trail that had been good to him turned on him and sent him slipping to the ground. He slide into the tail of the man slug, and found half himself covered with it's foul sludge. The thing turned it's attention from the child and looked down at Eli. The chest that had become it's mouth let out an angry yell. Eli rolled to avoid the large tail that swung at him. He jumped to his feet and took a defensive stance wishing he had brought a gun with him. Stupid fucking sweater, he thought.

The manslug brought it's tail in front of it's body and it's sludge began to boil. Three sludge luggies shot out from the tail and landed in front of Eli. The sludge popped up into the shape of little devil children. They were covered in the black sludge except for a few bits of white bone here and there. Their hands and feet were cloven with sharp white claws on the tip, and their eyes were a black void that held eternity in their depth.

The three small creatures circled Eli making hissing sounds, and biting at him. The one behind him jumped at him first, he twisted his body to dodge the lunge, but was an easy target for the other two who pounced on his chest and began tearing at him. Eli slammed his burning fist into the head of one of the creatures, it fell to the ground and the sludge shattered into pieces, the ghostly image of a child floated from the pieces. The other creature took it's place on his chest, and Eli drew up his arm in defense. Eli's arm tingled with sensation as he felt the sharp flex of his muscle and the release of the blue light emanating from his arm. The creatures jumped off in pain but Eli pressed closer to them, his will was strong. He knew he was freeing the dead children from an eternity of suffering. The two creatures shattered and their human spirits appeared and then faded to a better place.

Eli looked over to the manslug, but he was no where to be found. His eyes darted all around the room he had to be somewhere. A spittle of sludge fell on the floor and Eli looked up when he should have dodged away. The manslug landed on top of him and pinned him to the ground using it's tail and arms. It's chest split and the things mouth opened. Eli could see the pointed teeth where the mans ribs should have been. It's thick smelly tongue slithered over his chest as Eli struggled. It wrapped it's self around his back and latched on tight it began to lower it's mouth to consume Eli. The thing was to strong and Eli struggled in vain as his end came closer.

Then he had an idea, he still wore his brass knuckles. He stopped struggling and focused his mind on the knuckles feeling them as he curled his fist, and clenched his teeth. Had you been looking close you would have seen his eyes light up briefly, as the brass knuckles burned with intensity. Eli had never focused so hard, and the feeling left him a little winded but he couldn't stop. The flames from the cleaved weapons burned brighter and grew as Eli focused. The manslug let out a scream as he looked at the flame. Eli flipped his wrist so the brass knuckles were almost touching the flesh on the arm of the beast. It cried out in pain but did not let go. Eli dug deeper and deeper pressing as hard as he could to touch the beast with his fire. The things flesh burned and boiled before it let go with an angry pained scream.

The manslug slid off Eli, and tried to make a run for an exit. Eli rolled onto his stomach and pushed himself up to a standing position. He turned and ran for the manslug with his knuckles still burning. Eli leaped for his tail and connected with a falling punch that passed through the bitter bile of the things tail and into the hard cold concrete floor. The manslug arched back in pain and let out a cry that almost bloodied his ears. Eli quickly jumped up and grabbed for the human head of the thing, and pulled it back towards him. He followed through with a hard right cross to what he believed to be the brain of the thing located where the man and slug merged, and housed in a lump of sludge covered bone.

Punch after Punch the beast screamed and thrashed until it had no choice but to fall back onto Eli. With a hard thud the two hit the ground with Eli swinging away at the dense bone while his other arm was locked around the human neck of the beast. Finally as the beast pitched and rolled Eli broke through the bone and with one last punch splattered the brains of the manslug. It's flopping stopped and was replaced with a horrid burning smell, which Eli guessed could only be matched by burning sewage and infectious waste.

Eli squirmed out from under the heavy carcass as it began to degrade into black vile. When Eli looked up from the vile he saw the room was filled with hundreds of spirits of dead children. All had been consumed and imprisoned by the manslug. He stood taking in the sight of the lost youths. They all looked to Eli but a single spirit moved toward him. "Thank you." He said and they all faded into the white. They were the most sincere words he had ever heard.

The building changed from a pristine warehouse feel to a rundown abandoned slum. It was dark, and debris covered the ground. The windows let in very little light as they had been boarded up.

"Hello?" Eli called out, he knew a few of the children he saw enter had to be alive.

"Come on out that man wont hurt you." He waited for an answer, a breath anything that might tell him where they were. Nothing came.

"Look it's okay you'll be just fine." Eli said with a hint of frustration.

"Come on out I'm a Police Officer, you're safe." A small shaky voice said "Really?"

"Really." Eli replied. "You promise?" The shaky voice asked.

"I promise I'm here to help you." He said with assurance.

"Look if you don't come with me it's going to be hard to find your way out. With or with out you I'm leaving."

Eli waited for a response. There was murmuring, and movement. The children must have had a small chat about the decision. In the end they came out from their hiding place, and walked up to Eli.

"You're not a Policeman." one little girl said as she saw Eli. "If I was a cop you'd be dead."

She looked at Eli shocked and he remembered that they hadn't seen the manslug. All they saw was a normal looking though homicidal fat man. Whom any cop could have dropped with a single bullet. Oh well Eli shrugged. Cleaving his brass knuckles he used their light to find away out. The children followed behind him as he lead them to the front door. They paid no attention to his burning fist and had you asked they would have told you he was holding a torch.

The front door was boarded up and Eli had to give it a few kicks to break it down. When the sunlight hit them and the children were outside Eli looked down at them and said "Run home." They all scattered off in different directions. Except one little boy who stopped. He turned around and walked back over to Eli.

"Mister, what was that thing?" He asked.

Eli was shocked that the kid saw the manslug. Normally all anyone saw was a person or animal attacking them

"I'm not sure kid, evil." Eli stated half asking half telling. Eli looked down at the kid, and realized, to his dissatisfaction, he was the one from his vision. Shit, Eli thought. He weighed the choices of helping the kid versus just leaving him, in the end he wanted no responsibility for him, but didn't want to just abandon him.

"Listen kid,"

"My name's Jules." He interrupted.

"Jules there's a, a whole other world out there that you have just been exposed to. It's everywhere, and you've been living with it your whole life. Pretend like you don't see it, and avoid the darkness. It's for your own good." Jules looked puzzled at Eli, and then asked,

"What's your name?" Of all the questions this kid could have asked he thought.

"Eli. Now run off, and act like you don't see. If they think you don't notice them they'll leave you alone."

Jules nodded and said "Thanks Mr. Eli."

With a stern look Eli said,

"If you're going to thank me then you better take my advice."

The young boy eyes were filled with a great uncertainty, and he looked up at Eli one last time and then ran off. Eli calculated his chances as slightly less then horrible. Being forced to see so much at a young age made Eli feel sorry for the boy. He's not your child so leave it be, he told himself. Almost all the children out here have to grow up fast or die. Eli wished him the best of luck in his head, and headed back on his way. Ignoring the guilt that lodged in his soul to be drunk into submission later. He had more important thing to worry about like getting out of these stank clothes, and oh shit he thought, where did I leave that bag?


	3. Chapter 3

That night Eli came back to his shit hole of a home. He's still in the same clothes he left in and his bag was still filled. He threw the bag across the room. Grabbed a bottle of JAck D and threw half it down in one foul gulp. He burped fire and crashed on the couch.

"It's always like this." He said. "You do a good deed and you get fucked. It's true what they say."

He swallowed more of the liquor and aired more of his grievances.

"I mean really what the hell did I expect? A little thank you, maybe good karma coming back to me? Ha! What a loud of bullshit!"

He chugged down what was left of the bottle and smashed it across the far wall.

"Fuck this, I'm out."

Eli jumped from his couch and ran into the back room. He flipped on a light and began to change into his hunting gear. He pulled his guns from their resting place and strapped up. By the time he slid on the brass knuckles he was drunk. Eli stood infront of the mirror cracking the brass knuckles together. A song played in his head and found its way to his drunken lips slurring his words.

"Cave in his chest, put him to rest...I put that shit in reverse and put that ass in a hearse..."

Eli swayed in the mirror.

"Fuck it."

He shoved his hands in his pocket and headed into the night looking for the right fight.

It wasn't long when he found himself in front of a run down two story house close to the candy store from the morning. Light shined through the boarded up windows and Eli could make out the forms inside shuffling around. Death metal was blasting from the inside he knew it was covering screams.

The front of the house was pointed toward the street and well lit. The back however was dark and weeds had long ago over taken the yard. It was hard to tell wear the back of the house began and the weeds came to an end.

Eli circled the house twice and counted about 20 zombie type creatures inside. At least that's what he could make out. Most like there was 30 or more figuring one more for each you saw. Eli pulled the machete from his back and swayed as he walked toward the front of the door.

The porch boards squeaked and bowed under his weight. He had reached the top of the stairs and starred at the door. Only hesitating to form the picture of his battle plan in his foggy mind. It was quite simple he goes in and smashes, bashes, and chops up the pieces of shit in there. Really he thought it quite genius in it's simplicity. He reared back to kick open the door when a voice from the shadows behind him whispered.  
"Eli, don't"  
The small voice belonged to the same boy from earlier. Eli could barely see his head sticking out from behind the fence.  
"What the fuck?" Eli said. "Is this some kind of trick? You mother fuckers messing with my head? Fuckers can't fight like a man? Oh wait what the fuck was I thinking, you shits ain't people. Just the shit that don't flush down gods toilet."  
He staggered over to the boy with his machete still out. Jules pulled back as he approached and a look of fear crossed his face.  
"You ain't a monster kid. You don't have to fear me."  
"Don't go in there." Jules said.  
"Don't worry. I know what I'm doing. I have it all planned out. You just run home." Eli said.  
Jules walked out of the shadows and up to Eli.  
"No you can't my Dads in there." Jules said.  
"What?" Eli looked at him again concentrating on his sight. He saw only a little boy, not even a trail of control that would be left by any creature influencing him.  
"After I came home I saw...He wasn't..." Jules face was filled with sorrow and Eli felt it tug at him as much as he tried to ignore it.  
"Yeah he wasn't quite a man any more. Looked all dead with the ghost of a mans image over him?"  
Jules nodded at him with his head down. Tears began to run down his cheeks.  
"He's good to you and your mom?"  
Jules nodded again. Damn Eli thought.  
"Please don't. Please." Jules said.  
His hands pulled at the bottom of Eli's jacket and Jules burst out into a flood of tears. Eli knelt down and wrapped his arms around the boy. No words came to him. He wanted to say something to give the kid hope but he couldn't think of anything. Finally he said,  
"It's going to be okay. Let's get you home." Jules nodded and Eli sheathed his machete. The Death metal thumped in the background.  
"Don't ever come back here." Eli said.

As they walked down the street they saw many creatures pretending to be human. They ignored them all. Eli thought of his day, and how bad it was. Then he looked down at Jules. His eyes locked on the pavement. What a weight to carry, and you thought your life was rough.  
"You know I thought I was having a pretty bad day until I ran into you tonight."  
"Why? You Killed that slug earlier that was good." Jules said. He smiled like a survivor happy to be alive, painful but great full.  
"Well after that I couldn't sell some things that I needed to, cause of the stink. I don't know where to go now to make my money. Plus my best clothes were trashed. All from doing the right thing. That's why you should never do good deeds." Eli said.  
"You don't mean that." Jules said.  
"Naw I suppose not, but sometimes... It could be worse. Look at the day you've had."  
Jules nodded and walked on. Eli wondered why that had sounded so different in his head.

"This is my home." Jules said.  
They stopped in front of a run down apartment complex with bars on every window. The entry way smelled of shit and piss. Used needles sat in the corner. There was more broken bottle then glass in the front lawn. Jules looked a shamed as Eli starred at the place.  
"Don't feel like that. You did nothing to put yourself here."  
He couldn't help but feel a strange sense of dejavu as he starred at Jules and his "home".  
"Good night." Jules said and disappeared into the slum.  
As Eli walked away he turned away one last time and saw himself Jules age sitting on the steps. Cold and shivering looking like a ghost. He was wearing the same purple shorts and white tshirt he had on the day he was locked out his mom was running so late and it was getting very cold. The Police came but she never came back home. The ghost stood up his eyes never breaking from Eli's.  
"Tell her I love her." He whispered.  
The ghost waved and faded from sight.


End file.
